Tuesday, January 24, 2012

This week Tim Hortons changed all the sizes of their hot drinks. Just like that, get used to it people the sizes you have always known are gone. And then I thought to myself if Tims can do it why can't we? When I was in High School I was always a size 10. Now that I am done having 5 kids and creeping ever closer to the big 4-0 I find myself a size 14. A number, a label, I am honestly not comfortable with.

I am going back to Weight Watchers and trying to "fix" my size before my monumental birthday. But in the end it is all just numbers. Tim Hortons has proved that. All that is takes to make it so, is to say it is so! Tims says their Extra Large is now a Large and in six months no one will even blink an eye! So be whatever size you want. Why even use these terms. The next time a sales associate in the boutique asks if she can grab you something in your size say, "Yes Thank You, I am a size Fabulous!''

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Our cross province Christmas adventure started with driving to my Mom's house. We had a great family get together with a Turkey supper and all the trimmings and then the annual boys take on girls Trivial Pursuit grudge match.

The best part of the evening was when Levi's Uncle turned him into a pretzel! It's a right of passage to try and beat up your uncle and then realize nope you aren't there yet.

Great shot of the Snappy Sock!

Grandma Vanna has to step in to separate the boys.

The kids get their own table. Boys at one and girls at the other! We had such a great time. The best is going to the Senior Hockey game. You get to catch up with everyone in one place!

Then we were off to Foam Lake to spend time with Pat's family. The kids still love to sit on Baba's knee.

I love this picture. Grandma and Grandpa dancing to Boney M in the kitchen while Pat is tending the stove.

Since Levi can't take on his Uncle in Davidson he wants to beat up his Aunty in Foam Lake! How dare she try to take Levi's phone from him!

Pat's parents are retired and planned 5 meals a day! They were cooking for a month to get ready for us. Here was the late night fondue! So Good!!!!

It was a pretty traditional Christmas. Love, presents, food and fun! Our family has traveled every year away for Christmas. Last year we slept in our own house for the first time in 10 years of marriage. This year I realized Levi will only be in High School for 2 more Christmases and then he may be wanting to come home for Christmas himself! The time we spend with cousins, Aunts and Uncles and Grandparents is so important to all of us we wouldn't miss it for the world.

Pat's extended family also gets together twice a year. Once to golf in the summer and again at Ukrainian Christmas. The kids have formed close ties with their second cousins and love celebrating their culture.

This year was a new adventure. There were 45 of us at Christmas and we set up camp at the hall. We slept, danced, ate and lived there for the weekend! It was an amazing winter camp in.

Here are the chefs in the kitchen preparing our appy. Pat's mini pizzas. Don't worry if you missed them there will be another appy along in 5 minutes!

These are so great and easy.

Aunty and Uncle did some experiments with the kids. This one is milk and a couple drops of food coloring. Then you put in a drop of dish soap.

And voila it makes a neat pattern. I wish they always found dish soap so fascinating.

Then they took playdough. Filled it with Baking Soda, a drop of food coloring and added vinegar and made a mini volcano.

There were movies on the wall, cards, cribbageb, old home movies, board games, a flash mob, and then a talent show including Ukrainian dancing.

Now Ellie makes me put Ukrainian dancing on You Tube and she puts on this outfit which she calls her Ukrainian outfit and dances.

After a grand total of 18 hours of driving, 8 billion calories consumed, 298 hugs, countless presents and even more memories we are so thankful to have such great families to share our Christmas Celebration with and we can't wait to do it all again next year.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

We often have folks stop by the house and any chance the kids get they will ask them 100 questions. We have put a rule in place that the kids owe them $1 for every question they ask. This week we had an awesome plumber stop by and not only did he fix the toilet he went above and beyond the call of duty and let Ellie interrogate him.

We had a pool going on as to what was the mystery object plugging up the toilet. The guesses ranged from a Hot Wheels Car to a Barbie body part, fork, spoon, DS game. It was kind of like a game of clue. It ended up being Ellie in the bathroom with the........ You have to watch to the end of the video to see what actually was in the toilet.

As you will notice unlike Toddlers and Tiaras my daughter is very natural. No hair brushed, pink Bronco shirt, black velvet pants on backwards and I am pretty sure she has to pee through most of the video.

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

We did it! Every year we seem to miss out on the birthday celebrations as we are too busy with Christmas. This year we were making sure to commemorate our special Birthday Girl. We made up invitations to let the guests to prepare for a photo shoot and to wear something spectacular and bring accessories. We had so much fun.

Miss K was a special guest of honor and thank goodness because in the middle of all the preparations I didn't have time to do the birthday girl's hair!

Looking like a princess!

This gal is going to be such a great teacher! She is so amazing with the kids. She let them doll her up. She organized the two team dance off and her performance got them the win!

Such energy!

If you have a young lady with a flare for fashion I highly recommend the beauty shoot birthday bash!

I am still picking up feathers but glad we were able to have a special birthday! I recall one birthday party we had planned for her and she came down with Chicken Pox so the invitation read: Please come to the party at 2 pm but only if you have already had Chicken Pox!

I will be sad when she is too old or cool for Birthday Parties. I enjoy them as much as the kids!

About Me

Corla is a mom of five amazing kids from baby to teen. Corla has ran a succesful photography studio for 14 years from her home and has now moved into a studio space. She is a freelance photographer and writer who has had work published in Our Canada, More Our Canada, Newspapers, Today's Parent and her son's playschool journal. She is known as the Pentamom or MomGyver. She is also writing this about herself and finds odd talking about herself in the third person. Every day is an adventure!